By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
The $10 gold piece, officially known as the eagle, was the highest denomination coin authorized by the Mint Act of 1792, and one of three gold coins approved by Congress when it established the United States Mint. Its origin traces back to the Articles of Confederation period when Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton first proposed a revolutionary decimal system for American coins.
Jefferson originally referred to the $10 denomination as a crown but did not like using the term as it had implications antithetical to the young nation’s ideals. Congress resolved to call the $10 gold coin an “eagle” in its August 8, 1786 declaration. Hamilton, in his 1791 report “On the Establishment of the Mint”, wrote that “the eagle is not a very expressive or apt appellation for the largest gold piece, but nothing better occurs.”
With the eagle denominated at $10, the two small gold coins were denominated the half eagle ($5) and the quarter eagle ($2.50). The architects of America’s coinage system envisioned the eagle as the nation’s primary gold coin for international trade but merchants preferred the half eagle because it was more practical.
The denomination saw some circulation throughout the 1790s and early 1800s, with most of the coins exported to pay European merchants. Some were purchased as souvenirs by wealthy visitors and dignitaries. Most Americans never handled gold coins as they represented a week’s wages or more for the average free worker.
America’s first eagle gold coin was designed by Chief Engraver Robert Scot and is known today as the Capped Bust Eagle (some older references call it the Turban Head design). The obverse of the design features a right-facing portrait of Liberty wearing a conical hat while the reverse features a thin-bodied eagle standing upright, holding a wreath in its beak and a palm frond in its talons.
This design saw use for three years before it was replaced by the Heraldic Eagle reverse of Assistant Engraver John Smith Gardner. Numismatist John W. Dannreuther posits that between 10,609 and 18,676 coins were struck of this type, while the Red Book’s published total mintage, based on available Mint Records, is 13,344 coins.
In-Depth Capped Bust Eagle, Small Eagle Date Analysis by CoinWeek Notes
Capped Bust Eagle, Small Eagle Design
Obverse:
The obverse displays a right-facing Liberty wearing a soft cap, with long flowing hair streaming down the back and curling from under the cap at the front. An incongruous sweep of hair is wrapped from the back of the head around the cap, giving an impression that may account for the Turban Head name often attached to the type. The date is at the bottom and the word LIBERTY is at the top, generally to the right of Liberty’s cap. The coin is rimmed with denticles, inside of which are either 15 stars (1795 issues) or 16 stars (1796 and 1797 issues). The 1795 coins have 10 stars to the left of Liberty and five to the right. The stars are split eight left and eight right on 1796 eagles, and 12 left and four right on 1797 Small Eagle coins.
Reverse:
The reverse displays a slender right-facing standing eagle, with wings outstretched. The eagle is resting on a palm leaf and holds in its beak an upright small wreath – a motif thought to have been copied from an ancient cameo. Inside the denticulated rim, the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA forms nearly a complete circle, with UNITED and AMERICA intersected by the tips of the eagle’s wings. All coins were minted at Philadelphia and therefore display neither mintmark nor denomination; the value of the eagle was determined by the gold content.
Varieties
A few varieties are known, including the 1795 13 Leaves Below Eagle and 9 Leaves Below Eagle, and other minor varieties; the 1796 16 Stars, with eight stars on each side of Liberty; and the 1797 16 Stars, with 12 stars to the left and four to the right.
Coin Specifications
| Capped Bust Eagle, Small Eagle | |
| Years of Issue: | 1795-97 |
| Mintage (Circulation) | High: 5,583 (1795); Low: 3,615 (1797) |
| Alloy: | .9167 gold, .0833 silver and copper |
| Weight: | ±17.5 g |
| Diameter: | ±33.0 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | Robert Scot |
| REV Designer: | Robert Scot |
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References
Bowers, Q. David. The Experts Guide to Collecting and Investing in Rare Coins. Whitman Publishing.
–. A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Whitman Publishing.
Breen, Walter. Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Doubleday.
Dannreuther, John W., and Harry W. Bass, Jr., Early U.S. Gold Coin Varieties. Whitman Publishing.
Greer, Brian. The Complete Guide to Liberty Seated Dimes. DLRC Press.
Guth, Ron, and Jeff Garrett. United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Whitman Publishing.
–. Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins: 1795-1933. Whitman Publishing.
Taxay, Don. The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Arco Publishing.
Yeoman, R.S., and Jeff Garrett (editor). The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. Whitman Publishing.
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